The Falls Church

The Falls Church, a 1769 Anglican/Episcopal church, was dramatically affected by the Civil War. As the war began, the congregation disbanded and some families fled the village. Confederate forces occupied the church in August and September 1861, followed by the Union army for the rest of the war. Federal troops used it as a hospital in 1862, and the adjoining churchyard includes about twenty unmarked Union graves. Soldiers later turned the church into a stable, removing the wooden flooring and bricks under some windows so horses could enter. Further damage came as soldiers collected souvenirs, including the communion silver. By 1865, the church had been stripped of furnishings and its walls were covered with graffiti. One Union soldier removed the baptismal font and asked the local postmistress to help ship it home, but she hid it until the war ended. In 1866, the U.S. Army made inexpert repairs. The congregation formally reorganized in 1873 and elected a vestry that included former Federal soldiers who had moved to Falls Church and helped rebuild it.

Falls Church, Virginia · United States